5: Terrible contaminated area

The high-speed train ran very fast, reaching eight hundred kilometers per hour.

After a night, the high-speed train pulled into the station, and Xu Jingzhe got off.

He was startled; there were several other high-speed trains nearby, packed with people.

Numbness, crying, emptiness, fear—a thousand faces, a thousand expressions.

Following the crowd, Xu Jingzhe reached the exit, where the dazzling sunlight seemed to tell him that everything that had happened was a dream.

As long as he woke up, he would still be in his small room at the orphanage, the one that belonged to him.

After walking for an hour, a large, ultra-modern architectural complex appeared before him.

Above, disc-sized drones circled, emitting a 'buzzing' sound. On the city walls of the alloy gate, people were divided into two distinct groups.

One group held weapons, with parts of their bodies integrated with High Molecular Compound Zone high-tech.

The other group looked like ordinary people, yet they gave off a 'transcendent' feeling.

They silently watched the young men and women walking through this architectural complex.

Opposite them was the Pollution Zone.

"Jiejie, the new round of hunting is about to begin," said a middle-aged man with a high nose bridge, sharp features, and a buzz cut.

His left eye was a mechanical eye, its pupil glowing with red light points, flickering like a normal person blinking. The eye socket was made of silver-white metal, and the metal components extended to his temples, where a metal strip as thick as a lady's cigarette was inserted.

As he spoke, one could see the skin moving up and down with the metal strip.

"Old Peter, what's the point of hunting these little brats? They won't produce a pollution core in their bodies for a short time."

"For us, hunting those who have been here for ten years or more is what's interesting."

The two looked at each other and saw greed in each other's eyes.

...

Upon entering the alloy gate, there was a long corridor inside. The marble walls emitted a white light, and visibility was very low.

After walking for about half an hour, Xu Jingzhe's vision suddenly cleared.

A hazy sky, and a vast, empty expanse before him.

Desolate, dilapidated!

Not even a hint of green was visible.

"I, I'm so scared."

"Xixi, let's hold hands. Please don't abandon me, okay?"

"Help, help, let go of me."

"Rip..."

Not far away, different scenes of human nature were unfolding.

A timid girl curled up on the ground, afraid to move forward; a boy who had lost his mind unleashed his primal bestiality—since he didn't know how long he would live, he might as well enjoy physical pleasure.

Screaming, running, crying...

Xu Jingzhe's heart ached, and he really wanted to go help those poor girls.

But reason told him he couldn't.

In the Pollution Zone, there were no legal constraints, evil ran rampant, and survival was king.

He silently left.

The screams behind him gradually faded as he set off alone with his backpack.

The air in the Pollution Zone was murky, and inhaling it caused a slight burning sensation in his lungs. After only about twenty minutes, Xu Jingzhe had to stop and rest.

He hadn't eaten for a day and a night, and his mind was under extreme tension; he was very hungry.

Just then, Xu Jingzhe's hair stood on end, feeling as if he was being targeted by a wild beast.

He slowly turned around.

Damn!

A dog!

A dog from a movie—no, a living zombie dog!

Its body was rotten, its left eye squirmed with white maggots, its right eye was an eerie blue-green, and saliva constantly dripped from its half-open mouth, emitting a fishy odor that could be smelled from two miles away.

Xu Jingzhe trembled, telling himself, don't panic, don't panic.

It's blind, it's blind, it can't see him.

But!

The zombie dog took 'elegant' steps, walking towards Xu Jingzhe one step at a time.

"System Bro."

"Hey, System Bro, aren't you going to come out and protect me?"

"Hey, are you frozen again? If I die, you're finished too..."

Xu Jingzhe was frantic. What the hell was this?

Didn't it say everyone helps each other, progresses together, and the rich help the poor?

If I, Xu Jingzhe, have a bite to eat, then you, System, have a sip to drink.

Not keeping your word?

No way, next time I'll sign a contract and put a fingerprint on it.

A minute later, Xu Jingzhe confirmed that the system was frozen.

He cautiously got up, picking up a large stone nearby.

Life and death are fated; wealth and honor are in heaven.

Today, he, Xu Jingzhe, would fight the zombie dog.

"Ah..."

Xu Jingzhe yelled, grabbed the stone, turned, and ran, faster than a rabbit.

Damn it, only a fool would fight a zombie dog.

One bite from this dog, and he'd be finished.

But in only about thirty seconds, Xu Jingzhe smelled a strong, fishy odor, and a gust of wind struck him.

He was certain the zombie dog had arrived.

Human survival instinct was fully displayed in Xu Jingzhe; he didn't even have time to turn his head, his legs went soft, and he collapsed to the ground.

The zombie dog leaped high over him, crashing into a large tree, its half-severed lower jaw, exposing some red flesh, was dislodged.

The rotten flesh hanging from the tree branch stretched like a thread, connecting to the zombie dog's jaw, which was extremely disgusting.

Xu Jingzhe suppressed the urge to vomit... Ugh...

He was glad he hadn't eaten, or he would have thrown up everywhere.

Missing its attack, the zombie dog grunted as it stood up, shook its head, saliva splattering, its head a bit dazed.

Five seconds later.

"Roar..." A low growl, and its exposed bone limbs pushed off, charging at Xu Jingzhe once more.

"Oh my god!"

At such a close distance, Xu Jingzhe had no time to react, only watching the zombie dog's body grow larger and larger in his vision.

"Thud!" Xu Jingzhe was tackled to the ground, and in his panic, the stone in his hand accurately landed in the zombie dog's mouth.

His life was temporarily saved.

...

"Oh, there's an interesting little guy eight miles away who hasn't been intimidated by the zombie dog; he's struggling." Old Peter stood on the city wall, his mechanical left eye focused, clearly seeing Xu Jingzhe's struggle with the zombie dog.

"Heh heh... Humans facing danger will erupt with a powerful will to survive. Isn't this the potential we value most? However, an ordinary person living in the Seed Zone, encountering a zombie dog for the first time, can still fight."

"That proves his potential isn't low. Why wasn't his overall quality above average, allowing him to enter the High Molecular Compound Zone?" The lean man beside Old Peter was surprised.

He followed Old Peter's gaze, but could only see a blurry image; without high-tech assistance, his current strength prevented his vision from reaching that far, so he couldn't confirm if a young man was indeed fighting a zombie dog.

However, he remained skeptical of Old Peter's words.

"You want to trick me into saving a young man you think has great potential, and then train him on the path of body cultivation? Wasting my hard-earned resources, aren't you?" The lean man scoffed.

Last time, Old Peter failed to forge his left eye with rare metals, and he had mocked him, saying that old fellow was very wicked.

He always repaid grudges.

"Hmph." Old Peter said discontentedly, "Don't doubt my eyesight. My eyes are my ruler; it really is a masked young man who erupted with a powerful will to survive."

"A year ago, at the fighting competition in Adam City, that kid's leg went out of bounds, but wasn't he still captured by me?"

"Otherwise, your precious disciple would have lost and wouldn't have been able to enter the next round."